Moving Forward: Community Partnership Becomes Green Doors

Dear Community Partnership (now Green Doors) Supporters:

I have an exciting announcement to share with you - Community Partnership for the Homeless is now Green Doors!

It is a change I have been looking forward to since I started with the organization three years ago. Some of you may be wondering what took so long and others why we are changing our name at all.

Why Are We Changing Our Name?

There are several reasons for the name change - both practical and substantive. The old name was too long. It got confused with the names of other organizations. It emphasized the negative - the homeless state our residents are trying to exit. It did not capture how we are growing and changing as an organization. And perhaps most importantly, it did not positively connect to who we are and what we do. All that said, I had not prioritized changing our name until 12 months ago.

A feisty 93-year old woman - I'll call her Sarah - was the needed catalyst for action. Last Spring we were hosting a tense community meeting with a neighborhood association who was opposed to a project we were proposing in their neighborhood. In the middle of the meeting, Sarah stopped me to ask who I was and what organization I was with. I told her, "Frank Fernandez, with Community Partnership for the Homeless." To which she turned her head sideways and said, "...well, that says it all..." Her response captured, for me, one of the fundamental challenges we face as an organization and our residents face on a daily basis - how to get people to see beyond the word "homeless" and all that entails? Our basic identity was a barrier allowing too many people to not give us a chance, and more importantly, to not give our residents a chance.

That episode convinced me that we needed to make a change - a positive, forward looking change that better encapsulated our vision and mission.

Why Green Doors?

Some may assume that our new name is connected to the fact that we employ environmentally sustainable building practices in all our housing development. And yes, the organization is solidly committed to green building, as all housing non-profits should be. However, that is not the primary reason. Our new identity, Green Doors, is truly grounded in who we are and what we do. It is a symbol rooted in the history of individuals struggling with homelessness. During the Great Depression, men and women were forced to ride train cars across the country because they had no home and little opportunity. These hobos, as they were called, would stop in different towns, looking for work. Many encountered hostility and alienation. Yet, not all people treated them badly. Some individuals and families would open up their homes and provide these folks with a safe place to stay and treat them with human dignity. One symbol used to let the train riders know that they had a safe place to stay was a Green Door. Men and women, brothers and sisters, friends and colleagues would paint their doors green to signal that they were willing to provide a safe haven for the less fortunate.

That is who we are and what we do - an organization committed to providing homes to those less fortunate, committed to providing our residents with access to the opportunities they need, committed to ensuring that all members of our community are valued and treated with human dignity. Green Doors.

What Next?

Green Doors is taking on a more proactive role in advocating for its residents. To that end, we are launching next week, the Tex S. Taxpayer Series, a homeless education outreach project focused on addressing misconceptions about homelessness through impactful web-based video shorts. As Memorial Day is approaching, the first video release will focus on veteran homelessness.

Our hope is that Sarah, our feisty 93-year old neighbor, and others like her, will be able to see beyond "homeless" to the individual or family struggling to make ends meet. Stay tuned...